On Friday Luca had a Tenckhoff Dialysis Catheter

On Friday Luca had a Tenckhoff Dialysis Catheter (a soft, thin, flexible tube) placed in his abdomen (peritoneum) through the stomach wall under general anaesthetic. The catheter tunnels along the abdominal wall to the outside to provide permanent access for peritoneal dialysis until he receives a transplant. The procedure went well with no complications.

The dialysis has been started at lower volumes and and will be graded up slowly. It is imperative that the exit site be kept clean as infection can lead to peritonitis, an extremely serious condition. Unfortunately we know first hand how scary this can be as this happened to Luca when he was only a few weeks old in NICU. Luca will remain in hospital for at least another week whilst the exit site heals and the skins grows around the catheter to help keep it secure.